Physicswallah acquires edtech start-up iNeuron for Rs 13.8 crore from S Chand

Legacy Indian publisher, S Chand and Company, has sold off its entire stake in edtech start-up iNeuron to another edtech company, Physicswallah for Rs 13.8 crore, according to its regulatory filings to the National Stock Exchange and the Bombay Stock Exchange.
 
“For the said stake sale in iNeuron, the Company has executed the definitive agreements on December 21, 2022 with iNeuron, its Founders and PhysicsWallah Private Limited and others,” the filings noted. 
 
The Delhi-based company had invested Rs 6.58 crore in two tranches (December 2021 and September 2022) when it acquired the company last year. S Chand will be exiting with 2.1x returns in this deal. This is the company’s second exit this year. In July this year, it exited from another start-up operating in a similar space, Testbook, with about 7.8x returns. 
 
Commenting on the deal with Physicswallah, Saurabh Mittal, Chief Financial Officer of S Chand said, “We are happy to now hand over the reins to one of India’s most loved education platforms and are confident that both iNeuron and PhysicsWallah with their expert faculty and focus on blended solutions will have great synergy and the potential to spearhead India’s digital learning journey.”
 
He also said that this exit will help them invest in future opportunities that align with the companies’ growth strategies. 
 
“We are focused on developing our own solutions and channels of interactive learning for K-12, test prep and college and will be launching newer initiatives and content to spearhead  and navigate India’s journey on the back of the  New Education Policy 2020,” Mittal said.
 
S Chand is an Indian publishing company which was started in 1939 by Shyam Lal Gupta. Today, it is run by Gupta's grandson, Himanshu Gupta. S Chand has been known for its guidebooks, test-preparation books, among other things. The company also launched an online home learning solution called Learnflix during the COVID-19 pandemic.
 
Noida-based Physicswallah is an online test-prep platform started by Alakh Pandey in 2016.